Systems and methods for managing insurance for devices located within a property based on insurance-related events

ABSTRACT

Methods and systems for processing insurance policies associated with properties may be provided. A property may be populated with a plurality of smart devices or devices that are connected to a central controller, such as via wired or wireless communication. The plurality of devices may be covered by an insurance policy, such as a homeowners, renters, or personal articles insurance policy. The central controller may detect an insurance-related event and may retrieve sensor data and pricing information from one or more of the devices. The central controller may assess damage to the devices and may generate a proposed insurance claim based upon damage to the identified devices. Additionally, the central controller may facilitate a processing of the proposed insurance claim with a customer and an insurance provider. The smart devices may be, or be attached to, appliances, electronics, computers, televisions, jewelry, vehicles, furniture, or other equipment or personal belongings.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims benefit of the filing date of U.S. ProvisionalPatent Application Nos. 61/984,541 (filed Apr. 25, 2014, and entitled“HOME INSURANCE AND THE PREVENTION, DETECTION, AND MITIGATION OFHOUSEHOLD DAMAGE”); 62/012,008 (filed Jun. 13, 2014, and entitled “HOMEINSURANCE AND THE PREVENTION, DETECTION, AND MITIGATION OF HOUSEHOLDDAMAGE”); 62/061,000 (filed Oct. 7, 2014, and entitled “SYSTEMS ANDMETHODS FOR AUTOMATICALLY MITIGATING RISK OF PROPERTY DAMAGE”);62/061,003 (filed Oct. 7, 2014, and entitled “SYSTEMS AND METHODS FORHOMEOWNER-DIRECTED RISK OF PROPERTY DAMAGE MITIGATION”); 62/061,018(filed Oct. 7, 2014, and entitled “SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR DETERMININGCAUSE OF LOSS TO A PROPERTY”); 62/061,016 (filed Oct. 7, 2014, andentitled “SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR PREDICTIVELY GENERATING AN INSURANCECLAIM”); 62/061,012 (filed Oct. 7, 2014, and entitled “SYSTEMS ANDMETHODS FOR ASSIGNING DAMAGE CAUSED BY AN INSURANCE-RELATED EVENT”);62/061,009 (filed Oct. 7, 2014, and entitled “SYSTEMS AND METHODS FORCOMMUNITY-BASED CAUSE OF LOSS DETERMINATION”); 62/060,777 (filed Oct. 7,2014, and entitled “SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR MANAGING INSURANCEASSOCIATED WITH DEVICES POPULATED WITHIN A PROPERTY”); 62/061,007 (filedOct. 7, 2014, and entitled “SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR AUTOMATICALLYMITIGATING RISK OF WATER DAMAGE”); 62/060,808 (filed Oct. 7, 2014, andentitled “SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR MANAGING INSURANCE BASED ON DEVICELOCATION WITHIN A PROPERTY”); 62/060,847 (filed Oct. 7, 2014, andentitled “SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR MANAGING INSURANCE FOR DEVICES LOCATEDWITHIN A PROPERTY BASED ON INSURANCE-RELATED EVENTS”); and 62/073,695(filed Oct. 31, 2014, and entitled “SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR MANAGING THEOPERATION OF DEVICES WITHIN A PROPERTY”)—which are all herebyincorporated by reference in their entireties.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The present disclosure generally relates to managing insurance policiesassociated with properties. More particularly, the present disclosuremay relate to determining and updating inventory lists of smart deviceswithin properties, and managing insurance policies associated therewith.

BACKGROUND

Homeowner and personal property insurance exists to provide financialprotection against damage to the home, as well as personal propertyowned by the policyholder, respectively. With the proliferation of the“internet of things,” more household devices and items are gainingcommunication and network connectivity capabilities. The newcapabilities may enable data detection and more accurate information andmetrics. However, current insurance policy processing systems may notaccount for the connected devices and/or improved information.

SUMMARY

The present embodiments may, inter alia, facilitate communications withconnected devices and items, and/or facilitate insurance processingassociated with the connected devices and items, among otherfunctionalities. For instance, the present embodiments may dynamicallymanage insurance policies associated with a property (e.g., smart home)that may be populated with a plurality of devices. Each of the pluralityof devices may be configured to monitor various conditions of theproperty and may have an associated value or worth. A controller mayinterface with the plurality of devices to receive sensor data from theplurality of devices as well as assess damage to the devices, estimatereplacement costs for the devices, and generate proposed insuranceclaims associated with device conditions. The controller may alsoestimate device damage based upon a location of an associatedinsurance-related event. A customer may receive the proposed insuranceclaims and may be able to accept, reject, or modify the claimsaccordingly. The controller and/or an insurance provider may facilitatethe insurance claim processing with the customer so that the customermay be afforded an effective and efficient channel for claims processingwithout having to manually initiate, populate, and submit insuranceclaims.

In one aspect, a computer-implemented method for managing an insurancepolicy associated with a property may be provided. The property may bepopulated with a hardware controller in communication with a pluralityof devices, and each of the plurality of devices may be configured tomonitor various conditions associated with the property. The method mayinclude (1) receiving, via wired or wireless communication and/or afirst communication network, a set of sensor data from at least one ofthe plurality of devices; (2) determining, by one or more processors(such as one or more local or remote processors associated with a smarthome controller and/or insurance provider, respectively), from the setof sensor data, that the at least one of the plurality of devices isdamaged; and/or (3) retrieving a replacement cost of the at least one ofthe plurality of devices. The method may further include (4) generating,by the one or more processors, a proposed insurance claim for theinsurance policy, the proposed insurance claim including the replacementcost of the at least one of the plurality of devices; (5) communicating,to a customer having the insurance policy, the proposed insurance claim,such as via wireless communication or data transmission; (6) receiving,from the customer, an approval of the proposed insurance claim, such asvia wireless communication; and/or (7) handling the insurance claim atthe insurance provider, based upon the customer approval of theinsurance claim. The method may include additional, fewer, or alternateactions, including those discussed elsewhere herein.

In another aspect, a system for managing an insurance policy may beprovided. The insurance policy may be associated with a propertypopulated with a plurality of devices (such as smart appliances or othersmart devices or items configured for wired or wireless communicationdescribed below) that are configured to monitor various conditionsassociated with the property, such as a smart or interconnected home.The system may include a memory adapted to store non-transitory computerexecutable instructions, a communication module adapted to communicatedata, and/or a processor adapted to interface with the communicationmodule. The processor may be configured to execute the non-transitorycomputer executable instructions to cause the processor to (1) receive,via the communication module, a set of sensor data from at least one ofthe plurality of devices; (2) determine, from the set of sensor data,that the at least one of the plurality of devices is damaged; and/or (3)retrieve a replacement cost of the at least one of the plurality ofdevices. The processor may be further configured to (4) generate aproposed insurance claim for the insurance policy, the proposedinsurance claim including the replacement cost of the at least one ofthe plurality of devices; and/or (5) communicate, via the communicationmodule to a customer having the insurance policy, the proposed insuranceclaim, such as via wireless communication or data transmission. Thesystem may include additional, less, or alternate components andfunctionality, including that discussed elsewhere herein.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The figures described below depict various aspects of the system andmethods disclosed herein. It should be understood that each figuredepicts an embodiment of a particular aspect of the disclosed system andmethods, and that each of the figures is intended to accord with apossible embodiment thereof. Further, wherever possible, the followingdescription refers to the reference numerals included in the followingfigures, in which features depicted in multiple figures are designatedwith consistent reference numerals.

FIG. 1 depicts an exemplary environment including components andentities associated with retrieving and compiling device data andfacilitating insurance processing associated therewith, in accordancewith some embodiments;

FIG. 2 depicts an exemplary signal diagram associated with assessingmarket values of devices, and/or modifying insurance policiesaccordingly, in accordance with some embodiments;

FIGS. 3A and 3B depict exemplary interfaces associated with assessingmarket values of devices and modifying insurance policies accordingly,in accordance with some embodiments;

FIG. 4 depicts an exemplary signal diagram associated with estimatingdevice damage and facilitating insurance claim processing, in accordancewith some embodiments;

FIGS. 5A and 5B depict exemplary interfaces associated with estimatingdevice damage and facilitating insurance claim processing, in accordancewith some embodiments;

FIG. 6 depicts an exemplary signal diagram associated with retrievingdevice pricing data and facilitating insurance claim processing, inaccordance with some embodiments;

FIG. 7 depicts an exemplary flow diagram associated with assessingmarket values of devices and modifying insurance policies accordingly,in accordance with some embodiments;

FIG. 8 depicts an exemplary flow diagram associated with estimatingdevice damage and facilitating insurance claim processing, in accordancewith some embodiments;

FIG. 9 depicts an exemplary flow diagram associated with retrievingdevice pricing data and facilitating insurance claim processing, inaccordance with some embodiments;

FIG. 10 is a block diagram of an exemplary controller in accordance withsome embodiments;

FIG. 11 is a block diagram of an exemplary processing server inaccordance with some embodiments;

FIG. 12A depicts an exemplary method of automatically generating a listof personal belongings within an insured home and updating insurancecoverage accordingly; and

FIG. 12B depicts an exemplary method of estimating damage to personalbelongings within, or associated with, an insured home that is caused byan insurance-related event.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present embodiments may relate to, inter alia, managing insuranceprocessing related to personal property within a home or other type ofproperty, such as household furniture, appliances, electronics, vehicles(e.g., cars, boats, motorcycles), and/or other personal belongings(e.g., clothing, jewelry, antiques). The damage may be caused by water,fire, hail, wind, and/or other sources. The present embodiments may alsorelate to (a) providing and updating insurance policies; (b) thehandling or adjusting of home insurance claims; (c) the disbursement ofmonies related to insurance claims; (d) modifying insurance coverageamounts; (e) updating and improving damage estimate models, and/or (f)other insurance-related activities.

In one aspect, a home may have a “smart” central controller that may bewirelessly connected, or connected via hard-wire, with various householdrelated items, devices, and/or sensors. The central controller may beassociated with any type of property, such as homes, office buildings,restaurants, farms, and/or other types of properties. The centralcontroller may be in wireless or wired communication with various“smart” items or devices, such as smart appliances (e.g., clotheswasher, dryer, dish washer, refrigerator, etc.); smart heating devices(e.g., furnace, space heater, etc.); smart cooling devices (e.g., airconditioning units, fans, ceiling fans, etc.); smart plumbing fixtures(e.g., toilets, showers, water heaters, piping, interior and yardsprinklers, etc.); smart cooking devices (e.g., stoves, ovens, grills,microwaves, etc.); smart wiring, lighting, and lamps; smart personalvehicles; smart thermostats; smart windows, doors, or garage doors;smart window blinds or shutters; and/or other smart devices and/orsensors capable of wireless or wired communication. Each smart device(or sensor associated therewith), as well as the central controller, maybe equipped with a processor, memory unit, software applications,wireless transceivers, local power supply, various types of sensors,and/or other components.

Each of the smart devices may be included on an electronic or otherinventory list associated with the property. Further, the inventory listmay include a monetary value associated with each smart device. In someembodiments, the monetary value may correspond to the replacement value,the MSRP, or other metric associated with the corresponding smartdevice. The monetary value may be manually entered by a user orautomatically determined based upon various factors. The smart devicesthemselves may store the monetary value, such as in a data tag or othertype of storage or memory unit. The inventory list may further detail alocation (e.g., GPS coordinates, a room of the property, an area orsection of the property, or other location indication) of each of thesmart devices. In this regard, multiple of the smart devices may beassociated with a single area or location of the property (e.g., abasement, a bathroom, a kitchen, a first floor, etc.).

The central controller may remotely gather data from the smart devices(or sensors associated therewith) dispersed around or otherwiseinterconnected within the property. The central controller may alsoreceive data from an insurance provider (or other third party sources)that monitors potential risks to the property, such as inclementweather, crime patterns, recall data pertaining to items disposed on orproximate to the property, and/or other risks. The central controllermay analyze the data and automatically detect actual or potential issuesthat may result in damage to the property. In some cases, the data fromthe smart devices may indicate damage and/or risk of damage to theproperty. After analyzing the data or otherwise detecting the presenceof the smart devices, the central controller may facilitate variousinsurance policy processing and applications.

The systems and methods discussed herein address a challenge that isparticular to insurance processing. In particular, the challenge relatesto a difficulty in assessing or identifying property damage resultingfrom loss events. This is particularly apparent when considering thedifficulty in first ascertaining components and devices within aproperty, and then assessing damage to the components and devices.Additionally, determining the replacement cost of any damaged componentsand devices may be tedious and subject to disagreement. In conventionalcircumstances, the policyholder or an agent of the insurance providermay be required to manually assess and record damage resulting from aloss event, determine a damage amount, and then file a correspondinginsurance claim for the damage amount. In contrast, the systems andmethods dynamically ascertain a damage amount to a property based uponaccessing a replacement cost of any devices that may be impacted by theloss event, and then automatically generating a proposed insurance claimindicating the damage and the replacement cost. Therefore, because thesystems and methods employ dynamic assessment of damage to devices andcomponents within a property, and accessing a replacement cost for thedevices and components, the systems and methods are necessarily rootedin computer technology in order to overcome the noted shortcomings thatspecifically arise in the realm of insurance processing.

Similarly, the systems and methods provide improvements in a technicalfield, namely, home automation. Instead of the systems and methodsmerely being performed by hardware components using basic functions, thesystems and methods employ complex steps that go beyond the mere conceptof simply retrieving and combining data using a computer. In particular,the hardware components determine damage to devices of a property byanalyzing sensor data, access replacement costs of the damaged devices,pre-process insurance claims based upon the replacement cost data, andcommunicate the pre-processed insurance claims to insurance policyholders. This combination of elements impose meaningful limits in thatthe operations are applied to improve home automation by ensuring thatconnected devices are properly accounted for in the result of a lossevent and are therefore properly included in an insurance claim, and byfacilitating and/or enabling the policy holders to effectively fileinsurance claims.

Generally, the information gathered by the central controller from thevarious smart devices and/or sensors disbursed around the property maybe utilized for insurance purposes. The information may be used toprocess or manage insurance covering the home, residence or apartment,personal belongings, vehicles, etc. The systems and methods thereforeoffer a benefit to customers by automatically adjusting insurancepolicies based upon an accurate assessment of personal property value.Further, the systems and methods may be configured to automaticallypopulate proposed insurance claims resulting from property damage viadata gathered from smart devices. These features reduce the need forcustomers to manually assess property value and/or manually initiateinsurance claim filing procedures. Further, as a result of the automaticclaim generation, insurance providers may experience a reduction in theamount of processing and modifications necessary to process the claims.Moreover, by implementing the systems and methods, insurance providersmay stand out as a cost-effective insurance provider, thereby retainingexisting customers and attracting new customers. It should beappreciated that further benefits to the systems and methods areenvisioned.

I. Exemplary Embodiments

In one aspect, the central controller may update the inventory list forthe property as well as assess the market value of the devices on theupdated inventory list. The central controller may further estimate anupdated amount of insurance coverage based upon the market value, and/orfacilitate a modification to an insurance policy for the property. As anexample, if the central controller detects a washing machine with amarket value of $1,000 and a dryer with a market value of $600, thecentral controller may determine that the total market value of $1,600is less than the $2,000 worth of insurance coverage associated with thehomeowners or a personal articles insurance policy. The centralcontroller may therefore calculate an adjustment (e.g., a reducedpremium) for the homeowners or personal articles insurance policy and/ormay facilitate an appropriate modification to the policy.

In another aspect, the central controller may analyze device data todetermine an area of the property impacted by an insurance-relatedevent. By leveraging the inventory list and associated mapping data, thecentral controller may identify any device(s) located within the area ofimpact and facilitate any appropriate insurance claim processing for theidentified device(s). As an example, a home may experience a fire in abedroom which results in a fire detector sending an indication of thefire to the central controller. The central controller may examine thedata from the fire detector and identify a television and an airconditioning unit located within the bedroom. The central controller maythen generate a proposed insurance claim for damage to the televisionand air conditioning unit, and/or facilitate a processing of theproposed insurance claim with a customer holding an insurance policy forthe property.

In a further aspect, each of the devices (such as appliances,electronics, computers, televisions, or other equipment within aresidence) may have an associated replacement value whereby the devicesare configured to locally store the replacement value. After aninsurance-related event occurs, the central controller may retrieve thereplacement values from the devices and populate a proposed insuranceclaim for damage to the devices. As an example, a basement of a home mayflood which results in damage to a furnace and hot water heater locatedin the basement. The central controller may retrieve a replacement costfor each of the furnace and the hot water heater. Further, the centralcontroller may then generate a proposed insurance claim for damage tothe furnace and/or hot water heater, and facilitate a processing of theproposed insurance claim with a customer holding an insurance policy forthe property.

II. Exemplary Environment and Components for Processing InsurancePolicies

FIG. 1 depicts an exemplary environment 100 including components andentities for managing devices associated with a property and processinginsurance policies associated therewith. Although FIG. 1 depicts certainentities, components, and devices, it should be appreciated thatadditional or alternate entities and components are envisioned.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, the environment 100 may include a property 105that contains a controller 120 and a plurality of devices 110 that maybe each connected to a local communication network 115. Each of theplurality of devices 110 may be a “smart” device that may be configuredwith one or more sensors capable of sensing and communicating operatingdata associated with the corresponding device 110. As shown in FIG. 1,the plurality of devices 110 may include a smart alarm system 110 a, asmart stove 110 b, and a smart washing machine 110 c. Each of theplurality of devices 110 may be located within or proximate to theproperty 105 (generally, “on premises”). Although FIG. 1 depicts onlyone property 105, it should be appreciated that multiple properties areenvisioned, each with its own controller and devices. Further, it shouldbe appreciated that additional or fewer devices may be present in theproperty 105. In some cases, the plurality of devices 110 may bepurchased from a manufacturer with the “smart” functionally incorporatedtherein. In other cases, the plurality of devices 110 may have beenpurchased as “dumb” devices and subsequently modified to add the “smart”functionality to the device. For example, a homeowner may purchase analarm system that installs sensors on or near a door to detect when adoor has been opened and/or unlocked.

The plurality of devices 110 may be configured to communicate with acontroller 120 via the local communication network 115. The localcommunication network 115 may facilitate any type of data communicationbetween devices and controllers located on or proximate to the property105 via any standard or technology (e.g., LAN, WLAN, any IEEE 802standard including Ethernet, and/or others). The local communicationnetwork 115 may further support various short-range communicationprotocols such as Bluetooth®, Bluetooth® Low Energy, near fieldcommunication (NFC), radio-frequency identification (RFID), and/or othertypes of short-range protocols.

According to aspects, the plurality of devices 110 may transmit, to thecontroller 120 via the local communication network 115, operational datagathered from sensors associated with the plurality of devices 110. Theoperational data may be audio data, image or video data, status data,and/or other data or information. For example, the operational data mayindicate that a window has been shattered; the presence of a person,fire, or water in a room; the sound made near a smart device; and/orother information pertinent to an operation state or status of theplurality of devices 110. The operational data may include a timestamprepresenting the time that the operational data was recorded. In somecases, the plurality of devices 110 may transmit, to the controller 120,various data and information associated with the plurality of devices110. In particular, the data and information may include location datawithin the property, as well as various costs and prices associated withthe plurality of devices 110. For example, a washing machine may includea component such as a data tag that stores a location of the washingmachine within the property 105, a retail price of the washing machine,and replacement costs of various parts of (or the entirety of) thewashing machine. The various data and information may be programmableand updatable by an individual or automatically by the controller 120.

The controller 120 may be coupled to a database 112 that stores variousoperational data and information associated with the plurality ofdevices 110. Although FIG. 1 depicts the database 122 as coupled to thecontroller 120, it is envisioned that the database 122 may be maintainedin the “cloud” such that any element of the environment 100 capable ofcommunicating over either the local network 115 or one or more othernetworks 125 may directly interact with the database 122. In someembodiments, the database 112 organizes the operational data accordingto which individual device 110 that the data may be associated withand/or the room or subsection of the property in which the data wasrecorded. Further, the database 112 may maintain an inventory list thatmay include the plurality of devices 110 as well as various data andinformation associated with the plurality of devices 110 (e.g.,locations, replacement costs, etc.).

The controller 120 may be configured to communicate with othercomponents and entities, such as an insurance provider 130 via thenetwork(s) 125. According to embodiments, the network(s) 125 mayfacilitate any data communication between the controller 120 located onthe property 105 and entities or individuals remote to the property 105via any standard or technology (e.g., GSM, CDMA, TDMA, WCDMA, LTE, EDGE,OFDM, GPRS, EV-DO, UWB, IEEE 802 including Ethernet, WiMAX, and/orothers). In some cases, both the local network 115 and the network125(s) may utilize the same technology.

Generally, the insurance provider 130 may be any individual, group ofindividuals, company, corporation, or other type of entity that mayissue insurance policies for customers, such as a homeowners, renters,or personal articles insurance policy associated with the property 105or an insured. According to the present embodiments, the insuranceprovider 130 may include one or more processing server(s) 135 configuredto facilitate the functionalities as discussed herein. Although FIG. 1depicts the processing server 135 as a part of the insurance provider130, it should be appreciated that the processing server 135 may beseparate from (and connected to or accessible by) the insurance provider130. Further, although the present disclosure describes the systems andmethods as being facilitated in part by the insurance provider 130, itshould be appreciated that other non-insurance related entities mayimplement the systems and methods. For example, a general contractor mayaggregate the insurance-risk data across many properties to determinewhich appliances or products provide the best protection againstspecific causes of loss, and/or deploy the appliances or products basedupon where causes of loss are most likely to occur. Accordingly, it maynot be necessary for the property 105 to have an associated insurancepolicy for the property owners to enjoy the benefits of the systems andmethods.

Generally, the controller 120 may be configured to facilitate variousinsurance-related processing associated with insurance policies for theproperty 105. In one aspect, the controller 120 may update a total valueof the devices 110 and determine any corresponding adjustments to aninsurance policy for the devices 110. In another aspect, the controller120 may pre-populate proposed insurance claims based upon the detectionof damage to the devices 110, as well as various location and pricingdata associated with the devices 110. The controller 120 may communicateany generated or determined information to the insurance provider 130(and vice-versa) via the network(s) 125 to facilitate theinsurance-related processing.

The controller 120 may also be in communication, via the network(s) 125,with an electronic device 145 associated with an individual 140. In someembodiments, the individual 140 may have an insurance policy (e.g., ahome insurance policy) for the property 105 or a portion of the property105, or may otherwise be associated with the property 105 (e.g., theindividual 140 may live in the property 105). The electronic device 145may be a smartphone, a desktop computer, a laptop, a tablet, a phablet,a smart watch, smart glasses, smart contact lenses, wearable electronicdevice, or any other electronic or computing device. According to someembodiments, the controller 120 may transmit, via the network 125, aproposed insurance claim related to the property 105 to the electronicdevice 145. The proposed insurance claim may contain pre-populatedfields that indicate various information and data, such as causes ofloss (e.g., water, wind, fire, etc.); damaged devices; costs associatedwith the damaged devices; time, date, location of the insurance-relatedevent; and/or other information included in an insurance claim. Thecontroller 120 may also transmit any modifications to insurance policiesbased upon detected data from the plurality of devices 110. In response,the homeowner 140 may accept the proposed insurance claim or makemodifications to the proposed insurance claim, or otherwiseaccept/reject any modifications to the insurance policy. The electronicdevice may transmit, via the network 125, the accepted or modifiedinsurance claim back to the controller 120. The controller 120 mayfacilitate any processing of the insurance claim with the processingserver 135 of the insurance provider 130. In some implementations, theprocessing server 135 may facilitate the proposed insurance claimcommunications and processing directly with the customer 140. Theexemplary environment may include additional, less, or alternatecomponents.

III. Exemplary Communication Flow for Modifying Insurance Policies BasedUpon Updated Inventory

Referring to FIG. 2, illustrated is an exemplary signal diagram 200associated with updating an inventory of devices within a property 205,and managing insurance policies associated therewith. In particular,FIG. 2 may include smart devices 210 (such as the plurality of devices110 as described with respect to FIG. 1), a controller 220 (such as thecontroller 120 as described with respect to FIG. 1 or a smart homecontroller), a processing server 235 (such as the processing server 135as described with respect to FIG. 1 or other remote server) that may beassociated with an insurance provider, and a customer 240 (such as thecustomer 140 as described with respect to FIG. 1). The customer 240 mayhave an associated electronic device capable of communication with theother components, such as the electronic device 145 as described withrespect to FIG. 1. Further, the customer 240 may be the policyholder for(or have access to) an insurance policy issued by the insurance providerand associated with the property 205. For example, the customer 240 mayhave a homeowners or personal articles insurance policy that coversdamage or destruction to the smart devices 210. It should be appreciatedthat the smart devices 210 are populated within the property 205 or inproximity to the property 205.

The signal diagram 200 may begin when the smart devices 210 provide(242) device identifications to the controller 220. According to certainaspects, the smart devices 210 may communicate the deviceidentifications via a local network. In other aspects, a user mayinterface with the controller 220 to manually input the identificationsof the smart devices 210. The controller 220 may access an inventorylist associated with the property 205 and may update (244) the inventorylist according to the identifications of the smart devices 210. Inaspects, the controller 220 may access and update an existing inventorylist (e.g., by adding newly-detected smart devices and/or removing oldsmart devices), and/or may generate a new inventory list that mayinclude the smart devices (such as smart appliances, electronics,computers, televisions, etc.) corresponding to the receivedidentifications. In this regard, the inventory list may include anup-to-date listing of the smart devices 210 within the property 205.

The controller 220 may access (246) market value(s) of the smartdevice(s) 210 on the inventory list. The market value may correspond tothe manufacturer's suggested retail price (MSRP), and/or may account fora type and/or age of the smart device(s) 210. For example, a marketvalue for a refrigerator may initially be the MSRP of the refrigeratorand may decrease 10% on an annual basis. In some cases, the controller220 may locally store or calculate the market values. In other cases,the controller 220 may retrieve the market values from a third-partysource or entity, such as the insurance provider. In further cases, thecontroller 220 may retrieve the market values from the smart devices 210themselves (e.g. via a data tag associated with the smart devices 210).The controller 220 may use the market value(s) of the smart device(s)210 to calculate (248) a total market value of the smart device(s) 210.In embodiments, the controller 220 may calculate the total market valueby adding together each of the market value(s) accessed/calculated in246. For example, if the market value of an alarm system is $500, themarket value of a stove is $800, and the market value of a washingmachine is $600, then the total market value for the devices is $1,900.

The controller 220 may access an insurance policy associated with theproperty. In particular, the insurance policy may include homeownersinsurance that covers personal property damage and loss (such as damageand/or loss to the smart devices 210). The controller 220 may locallystore the insurance policy or may retrieve the insurance policy from athird-party source or entity such as the insurance provider. Theinsurance policy may identify a cash or replacement value for each itemof personal property covered by the insurance policy and, accordingly, atotal cash or replacement value for all of the items of personalproperty indicated in the insurance policy. Further, the insurancepolicy may have an associated premium for the customer 240 to pay forthe insurance policy to be in force. The controller 220 may beconfigured to compare the total market value of the smart device(s) 210calculated in 248 to the total cash or replacement value for thecorresponding devices identified in the insurance policy. In comparingthe values, the controller 220 may omit values for any items that areincluded in the insurance policy but are not identified as one of thesmart devices 210.

If the controller 220 identifies a difference in the total market valueof the smart device(s) 210 calculated in 248 to the total cash orreplacement value for the corresponding devices identified in theinsurance policy, the controller 220 may estimate (250) a modifiedinsurance coverage quote. In particular, the controller 220 may estimatea new premium based upon the difference in value, whereby the newpremium may be less than the original premium if the total market valuecalculated in 248 is less than the personal property value specified bythe insurance policy, or whereby the new premium may be more than theoriginal premium if the total market value calculated in 248 is morethan the personal property value specified by the insurance policy. Insome cases, the controller 220 may provide the total market valuecalculated in the 248 to the processing server 235 for the processingserver 235 to perform a similar calculation and determination.

The controller 220 may facilitate (252) processing of the modifiedinsurance coverage quote with the processing server 235. In particular,the controller 220 may provide the modified insurance coverage (andestimated new premium) to the processing server 235, and the processingserver 235 may review and analyze the modified insurance coverage andeither approve or reject the modified insurance coverage. If theprocessing server 235 rejects the modified insurance coverage, theprocessing server 235 may propose new terms for insurance coverage. Ifthe processing server 235 approves the modified insurance coverage, theprocessing server 235 may communicate a confirmation to the controller220.

The controller 220 may communicate 254 the modified insurance coveragequote to the customer 240, where the modified insurance coverage quoteindicates any changes to the insurance policy, such as any premium, rateor discount changes, coverage modifications, and/or the like. Inembodiments, the controller 220 may communicate the modified insurancecoverage quote to the customer 240 via various local or wide areanetworks. The customer 240 may either accept or reject the modifiedinsurance coverage quote. If the customer 240 rejects the modifiedinsurance coverage quote, processing may end. If the customer 240accepts (256) the modified insurance coverage quote, the controller 220may facilitate (258) an appropriate modification to the insurance policywith the processing server 235 so that the modified insurance policy maybe put in force.

In some alternate embodiments, the processing server 235 may facilitatethe insurance coverage modification directly with the customer 240. Inparticular, the processing server 235 may receive the calculated totalmarket value from the controller 220, determine any modifications to theinsurance policy, and offer a modified insurance policy to the customer240. For example, the customer 240 may access, via an electronic device,an application of the insurance provider, where the application notifiesthe customer 240 of an appropriate insurance coverage modification. Inthis regard, the customer 240 may communicate directly with theprocessing server 235 in lieu of the controller 220, where theprocessing server 235 facilitates any appropriate changes directly withthe customer 240.

IV. Exemplary User Interfaces for Modifying Insurance Policies BasedUpon Updated Inventory

FIGS. 3A and 3B illustrate exemplary interfaces associated with examplepolicy modification functionalities. An electronic device (e.g., asmartphone or mobile device) may be configured to display the interfacesand receive selections and inputs via the interfaces. For example, adedicated application associated with an insurance provider and that maybe configured to operate on the electronic device may display theinterfaces. It should be appreciated that the interfaces are merelyexamples and that alternative or additional content is envisioned.

FIG. 3A illustrates an interface 359 including details relating to aninsurance policy modification. In particular, the interface 359indicates that a detected amount of personal property ($8,000) in aproperty associated with the insurance policy is less than an amountcovered by the insurance policy ($10,000). Further, the interface 359may indicate that the discrepancy in property value results in a premiumdiscount of $5/month (i.e., the policy modification). The interface 359may enable a user to select whether to accept the policy modificationvia a “YES” selection 362 and a “NO” selection 360.

FIG. 3B illustrates an interface 361 related to a confirmation screenthat the electronic device may display if the user selects to accept thepolicy modification indicated in the interface 359. In particular, theinterface 361 may indicate that the user's premium payment is, or maybe, reduced from $25/month to $20/month as a result of the personalproperty assessment. The interface 361 may enable the user to dismissthe confirmation screen via an “OKAY” selection 363. The exemplaryinterfaces may include additional, less, or alternate functionality.

V. Exemplary Communication Flow for Processing Insurance Policies BasedUpon Device Location

Referring to FIG. 4, illustrated is an exemplary signal diagram 400associated with processing insurance policies based upon devicelocations within a property 405. In particular, FIG. 4 may include smartdevices 410 (such as the plurality of devices 110 as described withrespect to FIG. 1), a controller 420 (such as the controller 120 asdescribed with respect to FIG. 1), a processing server 435 (such as theprocessing server 135 as described with respect to FIG. 1) that may beassociated with an insurance provider, and a customer 440 (such as thecustomer 140 as described with respect to FIG. 1). The customer 440 mayhave an associated electronic device capable of communication with theother components, such as the electronic device 145 as described withrespect to FIG. 1. Further, the customer 440 may be the policyholder for(or have access to) an insurance policy issued by the insurance providerand associated with the property 405. For example, the customer 440 mayhave a homeowners, renters, or personal articles insurance policy thatcovers damage or destruction to the smart devices 410. It should beappreciated that the smart devices 410 are populated within the property405 or in proximity to the property 405. Further, each of the smartdevices 410 has an associated location within the property 405.

The signal diagram 400 may begin when an insurance-related event occurs.In some embodiments, the insurance-related event may be any event oroccurrence that may cause damage or potential damage to any portion ofthe property 405 or any devices or other personal belongings containedwithin the property 405. In one embodiment, one or more of the smartdevices 410 may include sensors that sense the insurance-related event(e.g., by sensing damage to the smart devices 410), whereby the smartdevice(s) 410 communicate (460) an indication of the insurance-relatedevent to the controller 420. In this case, the controller 420 mayoptionally notify (462) the processing server 435 of theinsurance-related event, such as to enable the processing server 435 toinitiate any associated processing. In another embodiment, thecontroller 420 may receive notification of the insurance-related eventvia a third-party entity or component, such as a third-party source(e.g., a weather source) or the insurance provider itself.

The controller 420 may determine (464) an area of impact resulting fromthe insurance-related event. In particular, the controller 420 maycross-reference the data received from the smart device(s) 410 in 460with location data associated with the smart device(s) 410 to identifyan affected area. For example, if the controller 420 determines that astove located in the kitchen of the property 405 has suffered damageresulting from the insurance-related event, then the controller 420 maydeduce that the area of impact may be the kitchen. The area of impactmay include a set of boundaries (e.g., the boundaries of a basement). Insome embodiments, if the controller 420 receives a notification of theinsurance-related event from a third-party source, then the controller420 may determine a potential area of impact based upon thenotification. For example, if the notification indicates a floodwarning, then controller 420 may determine that the basement of theproperty 405 may be a potential area of impact.

The controller 420 may build or access (466) an inventory list of aplurality of devices/items and a corresponding mapping (i.e., location)of the plurality of devices/items within the property 405. The pluralityof devices/items may include the smart devices 410 and may optionallyinclude additional items or devices separate from the smart devices 410.For example, the inventory list may include the following smart devices:an alarm system and a thermostat; as well as the following “dumb”devices: a couch and a chair. In some embodiments, the mapping mayindicate where, within the property 405, the plurality of devices/itemsare located within the property, such as via GPS coordinates, a roomindication, or other mapping or location convention. It should beappreciated that the mapping of devices/items may be automaticallygenerated by the controller 420, such as by using GPS coordinatestransmitted by the devices/items, and/or known triangulation techniques(using transmissions from and to the smart devices/items).

The controller 420 may examine (468) the inventory list based upon thearea of impact to identify any devices/items that may have been impactedby or potentially impacted by the insurance-related event. Inparticular, the controller 420 may identify any devices/items that aredisposed, or otherwise located, within the area of impact determined in464. The devices or items may include one or more of the smart devices410 and may optionally include additional devices or items separate fromthe smart devices 410. In some embodiments, the controller 420 mayidentify the devices/items as those having a location within the set ofboundaries of the area of impact. It should be appreciated that thecontroller 420 may identify the devices/items according to othertechniques.

In some embodiments, the controller 420 may retrieve (470) sensor datafrom a set of the smart devices 410 that are within the area of impact(i.e., devices that have been impacted by or potentially impacted by theinsurance-related event). The sensor data may indicate any damage to theset of the smart devices 410. For example, a window sensor may providedata indicating that a window has been broken or that water has entereda home. Based upon the sensor data, the controller 420 may estimate(472) an amount of damage to the set of smart devices 410 or an insuredhome. The controller 420 may further estimate an amount of damage toother items or devices separate from the smart devices 410 that arewithin the area of impact. In embodiments, the controller 420 mayestimate the amount of damage by identifying the MSRP (or other priceindicator) of the respective smart devices 410. Further, the controller420 may account for prices or costs of certain replacement partsincluded in the respective smart devices 410. For example, if the sensordata for a refrigerator indicates that the compressor may be broken,then the controller 420 may estimate the amount of damage to therefrigerator as a replacement cost for the compressor. For furtherexample, if the sensor data for an alarm system indicates that thecontrol interface may be broken, then the controller 420 may estimatethe amount of damage to the alarm system as the replacement costs forthe control interface.

The controller 420 may access an insurance policy associated with theproperty. In particular, the insurance policy may include homeowners orpersonal articles insurance that covers personal property damage (suchas damage to the smart devices 410 or an insured home). The controller420 may locally store the insurance policy or may retrieve the insurancepolicy from a third-party source or entity, such as the insuranceprovider. In some cases, the insurance policy may identify a cash orreplacement value for each item of personal property covered by theinsurance policy. Based upon the estimated amount of damage to the setof smart devices 410 (and any additional items/devices), the controller420 may generate (474) a proposed insurance claim for the insurancepolicy. In particular, the proposed insurance claim may indicate anestimated amount of damage to the set of smart devices 410 (and anyadditional items/devices) and other information. The estimated amount ofdamage may correspond to the estimated total amount of damage calculatedin 472 and/or to the cash or replacement values specified in theinsurance policy.

In an optional embodiment, the controller 420 may facilitate (476) amodification to the proposed insurance claim with the processing server435. In particular, the processing server 435 may modify any of theinformation or data included in the proposed insurance claim, or may addor remove any information or data to or from the proposed insuranceclaim. For example, the processing server 435 may determine that anestimated amount of damage to a smart refrigerator specified in theproposed insurance claim may be too low, and may modify the estimatedamount of damage accordingly.

The controller 420 may communicate (478) the proposed insurance claim tothe customer 440, where the proposed insurance claim identifies anydamaged devices or items and may include a claim amount associated withthe damaged devices or items. In embodiments, the controller 420 maycommunicate the proposed insurance claim to the customer 440 via variouslocal or wide area networks. The customer 440 may either accept orreject the proposed insurance claim. If the customer 440 rejects theproposed insurance claim, processing may end. If the customer 440accepts (480) the proposed insurance claim, the controller 420 mayfacilitate (482) a processing of the insurance claim with the processingserver 435. In particular, the processing server 435 may examine theproposed insurance claim, and either approve or deny the proposedinsurance claim.

In some alternate embodiments, the processing server 435 may facilitatethe proposed insurance claim processing directly with the customer 440.For example, the customer 440 may access, via an electronic device, anapplication of the insurance provider, where the application notifiesthe customer 440 of a proposed insurance claim. In this regard, thecustomer 440 may communicate directly with the processing server 435 inlieu of the controller 420, where the processing server 435 mayfacilitate any appropriate changes directly with the customer 440.

VI. Exemplary User Interfaces for Processing Insurance Policies BasedUpon Device Location

FIGS. 5A and 5B illustrate exemplary interfaces associated with exampleinsurance claim processing functionalities. An electronic device (e.g.,a smartphone or mobile device, etc.) may be configured to display theinterfaces, and receive selections and inputs via the interfaces. Forexample, a dedicated application associated with an insurance providerand that may be configured to operate on the electronic device maydisplay the interfaces. It should be appreciated that the interfaces aremerely examples and that alternative or additional content isenvisioned.

FIG. 5A illustrates an interface 583 indicating that damage has beendetected to a particular property. In particular, the interface 583indicates that a basement of a property has experienced flooding andthat a proposed insurance claim is available. The interface 583 mayenable a user (e.g., a policyholder of the insurance policy) to view theproposed insurance claim via a view selection 584 as well as to dismissthe interface 583 via a “DISMISS” selection 586. If the user selects theview selection 584, the electronic device may display an interface 585as depicted in FIG. 5B.

As illustrated in FIG. 5B, the interface 585 may include variousprepopulated fields associated with a proposed insurance claim, such asan insured's name 587 (“John Doe”), an insured's account number 588(“ABC123”), a date of the claim 589 (“Jan. 1”), a description of theevent and/or the loss 590 (“Water entered basement via broken window”),a list and price of any damaged items 591 (“Couch—$800, TV—$1,200, Alarmsystem—$300”), and a total claim amount 592 (“$2,300”). The interface600 may further include various selections that are selectable by auser. In particular, the user may select a “REJECT” selection 593 toreject the proposed insurance claim, and a “MODIFY” selection 594 that,when selected, may enable the user to modify any of the displayed fields587-592 and/or append other information to the insurance claim. The usermay also select a submit selection 595 that may cause the insuranceclaim to be submitted to an insurance provider. It should be appreciatedthat fields 587-592 are representative of fields included in aninsurance claim and, in some embodiments, alternate, additional, orfewer fields may exist.

VII. Exemplary Communication Flow for Generating Proposed InsuranceClaims Using Device Data

Referring to FIG. 6, illustrated is an exemplary signal diagram 600associated with generating proposed insurance claims associated with aproperty 605 populated with devices. In particular, FIG. 6 may includedevices 610 (such as the plurality of devices 110 as described withrespect to FIG. 1), a controller 620 (such as the controller 120 asdescribed with respect to FIG. 1), a processing server 635 (such as theprocessing server 135 as described with respect to FIG. 1) that may beassociated with an insurance provider, and a customer 640 (such as thecustomer 140 as described with respect to FIG. 1). The customer 640 mayhave an associated electronic device capable of communication with theother components, such as the electronic device 145 as described withrespect to FIG. 1. Further, the customer 640 may be the policyholder for(or have access to) an insurance policy issued by the insurance providerand associated with the property 605. For example, the customer 640 mayhave a homeowners, renters, or personal articles insurance policy thatcovers damage or destruction to the smart devices 610. It should beappreciated that the devices 610 are populated within the property 605or in proximity to the property 605.

The signal diagram 600 may begin when an insurance-related event occurs.In some embodiments, the insurance-related event may be any event oroccurrence that may cause damage or potential damage to any portion ofthe property 605 or any devices contained within the property 605. Inone embodiment, one or more of the devices 610 may include sensors thatsense the insurance-related event (e.g., by sensing damage to thedevices 610), whereby the device(s) 610 communicate (642) an indicationof the insurance-related event to the controller 620. In this case, thecontroller 620 may optionally notify (644) the processing server 635 ofthe insurance-related event, such as to enable the processing server 635to initiate any associated processing. In another embodiment, thecontroller 620 may receive notification of the insurance-related eventvia a third-party entity or component, such as a third-party source(e.g., a weather source) or the insurance provider itself.

In response to the insurance-related event, the controller 620 mayretrieve (646) sensor data and replacement cost(s) from one or more ofthe devices 610. The sensor data may indicate any damage, as well as anextent of damage, to the respective device(s) 610. The replacementcost(s) may correspond to a cost or price to replace the respectivedevice(s) 610. In one embodiment, the controller 620 may retrieve thesensor data via a local area network such as a WLAN; in anotherembodiment, the controller 620 may retrieve the replacement cost(s) viaa short-range communication network, such as Bluetooth®, Bluetooth® LowEnergy, NFC, or other types of RFID-based communication networks. Inthis regard, each of the devices 610 may be equipped with a “tag”configured to store the replacement cost and configured to be “read” bythe controller 620. It should be appreciated that the controller 620 mayretrieve both the sensor data and the replacement cost data via the samenetwork (such as various local area networks).

The controller 620 may generate (648) a proposed insurance claim for aninsurance policy and populate (650) the proposed insurance claim. Inparticular, the proposed insurance claim may be associated with damageto the appropriate device 610 and may include the replacement cost forthe appropriate device 610. In some embodiments, the controller 620 maymodify the replacement cost based upon the amount of damage to thedevice 610 as indicated in the sensor data. The controller 620 mayprovide (652) the proposed insurance claim to the processing server 635for any modifications, additions, and/or the like. According to someembodiments, the processing server 635 may maintain a database ofadditional replacement cost data that may more accurately reflect thereplacement cost of the device 610. The additional replacement cost datamay include data associated with previous occurrences of replacing thesame or similar devices (e.g., the same make and model of the device610). Additionally, the additional replacement cost data may include anyupdates to the replacement costs, such as updated MSRPs from amanufacturer.

Using the additional replacement cost data, the processing server 635may reconcile (654) the replacement cost data received from thecontroller 620. In particular, the processing server 635 may modify theproposed insurance claim to reflect a modified replacement cost. Theprocessing server 635 may provide (656) a modified proposed insuranceclaim to the controller 620. Additionally, the processing server 635 mayupdate (658) the additional replacement cost data based upon the datareconciliation of 654. Accordingly, the processing server 635 maymaintain updated replacement data that accurately reflects thereparability of particular devices and that may be used for subsequentinsurance claims. Although FIG. 6 illustrates the processing server 635as maintaining the additional replacement data, as well as processingthe proposed insurance claim according to the additional replacementdata, it should be appreciated that the controller 620 may also maintainor otherwise access the additional replacement data, as well as processthe proposed insurance claim according to the additional replacementdata.

The controller 620 may communicate (660) the proposed insurance claim tothe customer 640, where the proposed insurance claim identifies anydamaged devices or items and may include a claim amount (i.e.,replacement cost) associated with the damaged devices or items. Inembodiments, the controller 620 may communicate the proposed insuranceclaim to the customer 640 via various local or wide area networks. Thecustomer 640 may either accept or reject the proposed insurance claim.If the customer 640 rejects the proposed insurance claim, processing mayend. If the customer 640 accepts (662) the proposed insurance claim, thecontroller 620 may facilitate (664) a processing of the insurance claimwith the processing server 635. In particular, the processing server 635may examine the proposed insurance claim, and either approve or deny theproposed insurance claim.

In some alternate embodiments, the processing server 635 may facilitatethe proposed insurance claim processing directly with the customer 640.For example, the customer 640 may access, via an electronic device, anapplication of the insurance provider, where the application notifiesthe customer 640 of a proposed insurance claim. In this regard, thecustomer 640 may communicate directly with the processing server 635 inlieu of the controller 620, where the processing server 635 mayfacilitate any appropriate changes directly with the customer 640. Thegraphical interfaces associated with the functionality described in FIG.6 may be similar to the interfaces of FIGS. 5A and 5B.

VIII. Exemplary Communication Flow for Modifying Insurance PoliciesBased Upon Updated Inventory

Referring to FIG. 7, depicted is a block diagram of an exemplary method700 of managing an insurance policy associated with a property. Theproperty may be populated with a plurality of devices in communicationwith a controller (such as the controller 120 as discussed with respectto FIG. 1). The method 700 may be facilitated by the controller 120communicating with the insurance provider 130 (and specifically theprocessing server 135) as well as the customer 140. The customer 140 mayaccess an electronic device (such as the electronic device 145) to viewinformation and make appropriate selections.

The method 700 may begin when the controller receives (block 705) aplurality of identifications associated with the plurality of devices.The controller may receive the plurality of identifications via variousnetworks, or may otherwise access the plurality of identifications. Thecontroller may access (block 710) a market value for each of theplurality of devices. In embodiments, the controller may access themarket value from respective data tags associated with the plurality ofdevices via a short-range communication network. The controller maycalculate (block 715) a total amount of worth for the plurality ofdevices by adding the market values of the plurality of devices.

The customer may have an insurance policy associated with the propertyor property owner (customer), where the insurance policy insures damageto the plurality of devices and specifies a reimbursable amount for thedamage. If the total amount of worth calculated in block 715 differsfrom the reimbursable amount, than the insurance policy may need anadjustment. Accordingly, the controller may estimate (block 720) amodified insurance coverage quote for the insurance policy based uponthe total amount of worth. The modified insurance coverage quote maymodify various parameters of the insurance policy, such as the premiumamount, an amount of coverage, a discount, and/or the like. In someembodiments, the controller may send the modified insurance coveragequote to the insurance provider, which may approve or reject (block 725)the modified insurance coverage quote.

If the insurance provider rejects the modified insurance coverage quote(“NO”), processing may return to block 720 in which the controller mayestimate another modified insurance coverage quote. In some embodiments,the insurance provider may itself provide a modified insurance coveragequote. If the insurance provider approves the modified insurancecoverage quote (“YES”), the controller may communicate (block 730) themodified insurance coverage quote to the customer, who may accept,reject, or modify the modified insurance coverage quote. In block 735,the controller may determine whether the customer has accepted themodified insurance coverage quote. If the customer has not accepted themodified insurance coverage quote (“NO”), processing may end or proceedto other functionality. If the customer has accepted the modifiedinsurance coverage quote (“YES”), the controller may facilitate (block740) processing of the modified insurance coverage quote with theinsurance provider. The method may include additional, fewer, oralternate actions, including those discussed elsewhere herein.

IX. Exemplary Communication Flow for Processing Insurance Policies BasedUpon Device Location

Referring to FIG. 8, depicted is a block diagram of an exemplary method800 of managing an insurance policy associated with a property. Theproperty may be populated with a plurality of devices in communicationwith a controller (such as the controller 120 as discussed with respectto FIG. 1). The method 800 may be facilitated by the controller 120communicating with the insurance provider 130 (and specifically theprocessing server 135) as well as the customer 140. The customer 140 mayaccess an electronic device (such as the electronic device 145) to viewinformation and make appropriate selections.

The method 800 may begin when the controller receives (block 805) anotification of an insurance-related event associated with the property.The notification may be in the form of sensor data detected by one ormore of the plurality of devices, a notification from a third-partysource, or other data. The controller may determine (block 810) an areaof the property that may be impacted by the insurance-related event. Insome embodiments, the controller may determine the area based uponlocation data included in any sensor data that is received. In otherembodiments, the controller may determine the area based upon the typeof the insurance-related event (e.g., a basement flood). The area mayhave associated coordinates, boundaries, areas, or other location-basedparameters.

The controller may access (block 815) an inventory list associated withthe property. The inventory list may identify each of the plurality ofdevices populated within the property as well as any other devices oritems that may not be in communication with the controller. Further, theinventory list may include the locations (e.g., GPS coordinates,room/area identifications, etc.) of the plurality of devices and anyadditional devices or items within the property. The controller mayexamine (block 820) the inventory list to identify a portion of thedevices that have a location corresponding to the impacted area. Inparticular, the portion of the devices may have GPS coordinates or anassociated area that may be within the impacted area. The portion of thedevices may include any of the devices connected to the controller, aswell as any other devices or items. The controller may estimate (block825) a damage amount for the portion of devices, and therefore a totalamount of damage for the portion of the devices. The controller mayestimate the damage amount based upon various replacement values orcosts associated with the portion of the devices, and/or based upon theamount of damage indicated in any sensor data.

The controller may generate (block 830) a proposed insurance claim thatmay include the total amount of damage. The proposed insurance claim mayfurther indicate additional fields and information, such asidentifications of the customer and the insurance policy, a descriptionof the damage, and/or the like. The controller may communicate (block835) the proposed insurance claim to the customer, who may accept,reject, or modify the proposed insurance claim. In block 840, thecontroller may determine whether the customer has accepted the proposedinsurance claim. If the customer has not accepted the proposed insuranceclaim (“NO”), processing may end or proceed to other functionality. Ifthe customer has accepted the proposed insurance claim (“YES”), thecontroller may facilitate (block 845) processing of the proposedinsurance claim with the insurance provider. The method may includeadditional, fewer, or alternate actions, including those discussedelsewhere herein.

X. Exemplary Communication Flow for Generating Proposed Insurance ClaimsUsing Device Data

Referring to FIG. 9, depicted is a block diagram of an exemplary method900 of processing an insurance claim associated with a property. Theproperty may be populated with a plurality of devices in communicationwith a controller (such as the controller 120 as discussed with respectto FIG. 1). The method 900 may be facilitated by the controller 120communicating with the insurance provider 130 (and specifically theprocessing server 135) as well as the customer 140. The customer 140 mayaccess an electronic device (such as the electronic device 145) to viewinformation and make appropriate selections.

The method 900 may begin when the controller retrieves (block 905) a setof sensor data from at least one of the plurality of devices. Thecontroller may retrieve the set of sensor data in response to detectingan insurance-related event. In some embodiments, the at least one of theplurality of devices may transmit the sensor data automatically inresponse to detecting an insurance-related event. The controller mayexamine the set of sensor data to determine (block 910) whether thedevice may be damaged. It should be appreciated that the device may havevarious degrees of damage.

If the device is not damaged (“NO”), processing may return to 905 orproceed to other functionality. If the device is damaged (“YES”), thecontroller may retrieve (block 915), from the at least one device, areplacement cost of the at least one device. In some embodiments, thecontroller may retrieve the replacement cost from a data tag via ashort-range communication network such as Bluetooth®, Bluetooth® LowEnergy, NFC, or the like. In other embodiments, the controller mayretrieve the replacement cost from other local area networks. Thecontroller may also access (block 920) additional replacement cost dataassociated with the at least one device. The controller may access theadditional replacement cost data from local storage or from athird-party source, such as the insurance provider. Using the additionalreplacement cost data, the controller may modify (block 925) thereplacement cost. In particular, the additional replacement cost datamay more accurately reflect the current replacement cost of the at leastone device.

The controller may generate (block 930) a proposed insurance claim thatmay include the modified replacement cost. The proposed insurance claimmay further indicate additional fields and information, such asidentifications of the customer and the insurance policy, a descriptionof the damage, and/or the like. The controller may communicate (block935) the proposed insurance claim to the customer, who may accept,reject, or modify the proposed insurance claim. In block 940, thecontroller may determine whether the customer has accepted the proposedinsurance claim. If the customer has not accepted the proposed insuranceclaim (“NO”), processing may end or proceed to other functionality. Ifthe customer has accepted the proposed insurance claim (“YES”), thecontroller may facilitate (block 945) processing of the proposedinsurance claim with the insurance provider. The method may includeadditional, fewer, or alternate actions, including those discussedelsewhere herein.

XI. Exemplary Controller

FIG. 10 illustrates a diagram of an exemplary controller 1020 (such asthe controller 120 discussed with respect to FIG. 1) in which thefunctionalities as discussed herein may be implemented. It should beappreciated that the controller 1020 may be associated with a property,as discussed herein.

The controller 1020 may include a processor 1022, as well as a memory1078. The memory 1078 may store an operating system 1079 capable offacilitating the functionalities as discussed herein, as well as a setof applications 1075 (i.e., machine readable instructions). For example,one of the set of applications 1075 may be a policy processingapplication 1084 configured to access and process customer insurancepolicies, and another of the set of applications 1075 may be a damageassessment application 1090 configured to assess damage, prices, andlocations associated with devices populated within a property. It shouldbe appreciated that other applications are envisioned.

The processor 1022 may interface with the memory 1078 to execute theoperating system 1079 and the set of applications 1075. According tosome embodiments, the memory 1078 may also include a data record storage1080 that stores various data and information associated with devicesand insurance policies. The policy processing application 1084 and thedamage assessment application 1090 may interface with the data recordstorage 1080 to retrieve relevant information that the policy processingapplication 1084 and the damage assessment application 1090 may use tomanage insurance policies, generate proposed insurance claims, generatenotifications, and/or perform other functionalities. The memory 1078 mayinclude one or more forms of volatile and/or non-volatile, fixed and/orremovable memory, such as read-only memory (ROM), electronicprogrammable read-only memory (EPROM), random access memory (RAM),erasable electronic programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), and/or otherhard drives, flash memory, MicroSD cards, and others.

The controller 1020 may further include a communication module 1077configured to communicate data via one or more networks 1025. Accordingto some embodiments, the communication module 1077 may include one ormore transceivers (e.g., WWAN, WLAN, and/or WPAN transceivers)functioning in accordance with IEEE standards, 3GPP standards, or otherstandards, and configured to receive and transmit data via one or moreexternal ports 1076. Further, the communication module 1077 may includea short-range network component (e.g., an RFID reader) configured forshort-range network communications. For example, the communicationmodule 1077 may receive, via the network 1025, sensor data from aplurality of devices populated within a property. The controller 1020may further include a user interface 1081 configured to presentinformation to a user and/or receive inputs from the user. As shown inFIG. 10, the user interface 1081 may include a display screen 1082 andI/O components 1083 (e.g., ports, capacitive or resistive touchsensitive input panels, keys, buttons, lights, LEDs, speakers,microphones). According to some embodiments, the user may access thecontroller 1025 via the user interface 1081 to process insurancepolicies and/or perform other functions. The controller 1020 may beconfigured to perform insurance-related functions, such as generatingproposed insurance claims and facilitating insurance claim processing.In some embodiments, the controller 1020 may perform the functionalitiesas discussed herein as part of a “cloud” network or may otherwisecommunicate with other hardware or software components within the cloudto send, retrieve, or otherwise analyze data.

In general, a computer program product in accordance with an embodimentmay include a computer usable storage medium (e.g., standard randomaccess memory (RAM), an optical disc, a universal serial bus (USB)drive, or the like) having computer-readable program code embodiedtherein, wherein the computer-readable program code may be adapted to beexecuted by the processor 1022 (e.g., working in connection with theoperating system 1079) to facilitate the functions as described herein.In this regard, the program code may be implemented in any desiredlanguage, and may be implemented as machine code, assembly code, bytecode, interpretable source code or the like (e.g., via C, C++, Java,Actionscript, Objective-C, Javascript, CSS, XML). In some embodiments,the computer program product may be part of a cloud network ofresources.

The controller may be a smart or interconnected home controller. Thecontroller may include additional, less, or alternate components,including those discussed elsewhere herein.

XII. Exemplary Server

FIG. 11 illustrates a diagram of an exemplary processing server 1135(such as the processing server 135 discussed with respect to FIG. 1) inwhich the functionalities as discussed herein may be implemented. Itshould be appreciated that the processing server 1135 may be associatedwith an insurance provider, as discussed herein.

The processing server 1135 may include a processor 1122, as well as amemory 1178. The memory 1178 may store an operating system 1179 capableof facilitating the functionalities as discussed herein, as well as aset of applications 1175 (i.e., machine readable instructions). Forexample, one of the set of applications 1175 may be a policy processingapplication 1184 configured to manage customer insurance policies. Itshould be appreciated that other applications 1190 are envisioned.

The processor 1122 may interface with the memory 1178 to execute theoperating system 1179 and the set of applications 1175. According tosome embodiments, the memory 1178 may also include a data record storage1180 that stores various information associated with customer insurancepolicies. The policy processing application 1184 may interface with thedata record storage 1180 to retrieve relevant information that thepolicy processing application 1184 may use to manage insurance policies,generate notifications, and/or perform other functionalities. The memory1178 may include one or more forms of volatile and/or non-volatile,fixed and/or removable memory, such as read-only memory (ROM),electronic programmable read-only memory (EPROM), random access memory(RAM), erasable electronic programmable read-only memory (EEPROM),and/or other hard drives, flash memory, MicroSD cards, and others.

The processing server 1135 may further include a communication module1177 configured to communicate data via one or more networks 1125.According to some embodiments, the communication module 1177 may includeone or more transceivers (e.g., WWAN, WLAN, and/or WPAN transceivers)functioning in accordance with IEEE standards, 3GPP standards, or otherstandards, and configured to receive and transmit data via one or moreexternal ports 1176. For example, the communication module 1177 mayreceive, via the network 1125, proposed insurance claims from userdevices or hardware components associated with properties. Theprocessing server 1125 may further include a user interface 1181configured to present information to a user and/or receive inputs fromthe user. As shown in FIG. 11, the user interface 1181 may include adisplay screen 1182 and I/O components 1183 (e.g., ports, capacitive orresistive touch sensitive input panels, keys, buttons, lights, LEDs,speakers, microphones). According to some embodiments, the user mayaccess the processing server 1135 via the user interface 1181 to processinsurance policies and/or perform other functions. In some embodiments,the processing server 1135 may perform the functionalities as discussedherein as part of a “cloud” network or may otherwise communicate withother hardware or software components within the cloud to send,retrieve, or otherwise analyze data.

In general, a computer program product in accordance with an embodimentmay include a computer usable storage medium (e.g., standard randomaccess memory (RAM), an optical disc, a universal serial bus (USB)drive, or the like) having computer-readable program code embodiedtherein, wherein the computer-readable program code may be adapted to beexecuted by the processor 1122 (e.g., working in connection with theoperating system 1179) to facilitate the functions as described herein.In this regard, the program code may be implemented in any desiredlanguage, and may be implemented as machine code, assembly code, bytecode, interpretable source code or the like (e.g., via C, C++, Java,Actionscript, Objective-C, Javascript, CSS, XML). In some embodiments,the computer program product may be part of a cloud network ofresources. The server may include additional, less, or alternatecomponents, including those discussed elsewhere herein.

XIII. Exemplary Method of Insuring Personal Items

As detailed elsewhere herein, the smart home controller may update alist of personal belongings via wireless or wired communication. Thesmart home controller may maintain a current list of smart or otherpersonal belongings in the home. As new items are brought into the home,garage, and/or yard, the smart home controller may recognize those newitems. The smart home controller may inform the insurance provider, suchas via wireless communication, of the new items. As a result, theinsurance provider may automatically adjust the amount of personalproperty coverage on the home and/or ask the insured to approve arecommended increase or adjustment in insurance coverage. The update ofinformation related to personal belongings or items in the home mayfacilitate more efficient post-loss or post-damage adjustments toinsurance claims and/or claim amounts.

The smart home controller may facilitate the total automation of homeand/or personal belongings inventory. The smart home controller may beinterconnected with smart home sensors, home cameras or video equipment,and/or smart devices (with or without cameras, such as smart phones,laptops, computers, smart watches, tablets, smart glasses, smart contactlenses, wearable smart communication devices, and/or other wirelesscommunication devices). The smart home controller, interconnected withother devices, may detect damage and/or loss; identify the item or itemslost, or comparable items; provide automatic quotes or prices for repairand/or replacement; and/or offer an equipment replacement and/or dollaramount to the insured.

FIG. 12A depicts an exemplary computer-implemented method ofautomatically building and/or updating a list of personal belongingswithin a home and applying the list of personal belongings forinsurance-related purposes 1200. The method 1200 may include populatinga home with a smart home controller and/or smart items (such as smartappliances, smart equipment, and/or smart personal belongings) 1202;automatically building and/or updating an inventory of personal items inthe home via wireless communication between the smart items and thesmart home controller 1204; automatically estimating and/or updating atotal amount of worth of personal property in the home 1206;automatically estimating new, and/or updating existing, home and/orpersonal property insurance coverage 1208; presenting proposed insurancecoverage and/or premiums to a potential or existing insured for approvaland/or modification via a mobile device and/or wireless communication1210; and/or remotely accepting an insured's approval of, and/ormodification to, the proposed insurance coverage and/or premium 1212 tofacilitate the insurance provider providing the approved insurancecoverage to the insured. The method 1200 may include the smart homecontroller automatically tracking the location of stolen or lost smartitems via wireless communication 1214; and/or the smart home controllernotifying the insured, insurance provider, police, and/or other entitiesof the stolen or lost smart item location automatically via wirelesscommunication 1216. The method may include additional, fewer, oralternate actions, including those discussed elsewhere herein.

The method 1200 may include populating a home with a smart homecontroller and/or smart items (such as smart appliances, smartequipment, and/or smart personal belongings) 1202. The smart homecontroller and smart items may communicate via wired and/or wirelesscommunication, as discussed elsewhere herein. Additionally oralternatively, the smart items in the home may wirelessly communicatewith another local and/or remote processor or server, such as anotherprocessor or computer located within the home, and/or a remote processoror server associated with an insurance provider and/or other third partyentity.

The method 1200 may include automatically building and/or updating (viaa local and/or remote processor or server, such as a smart homecontroller or other home computer/processor, and/or a remote server orprocessor associated with an insurance provider) an inventory ofpersonal items in the home via wireless (or even wired) communicationbetween the smart items and the smart home controller (or other localand/or remote processors or servers) 1204. Each smart item maycommunicate its exact (e.g., GPS) location and/or a general location,such as an area of the home (e.g., master bedroom, kitchen, garage,living room, second floor bathroom, etc.), to the smart home controller,and/or to a remote processor or server, such as an insurance providerremote processor or server. Additionally or alternatively, the smarthome controller, and/or a remote processor or server may analyze digitaland/or analog photos, videos, and/or other images of the home, anddetermine (a) where items or personal belongings are currently located;(b) when new items are brought into the home, and/or (c) when items aremoved to new locations or rooms within the home.

The method 1200 may include automatically estimating and/or updating(via the local and/or remote processor or server), a total amount ofworth of personal property in the home 1206. Analysis of data receivedor collected from smart cameras (video, photographs, etc.) situatedabout the home may lead to a local or remote processor comparing theimages of personal items with comparable items (and/or the worth of suchcomparable items) to estimate and/or calculate a comparable worth of thepersonal property within the home, and/or compare and/or associate thepersonal items within the home with prices of comparable items currentlyfor sale by various retailers.

The method 1200 may include automatically estimating new, and/orupdating existing, home and/or personal property insurance coverage (viathe local and/or remote processor or server) 1208. For instance, basedupon the comparable worth of personal items within the home, anappropriate amount of personal property insurance coverage may beestimated and/or presented to the insured for consideration. As additionpersonal items (new televisions, pieces of furniture, antiques, smartappliances, etc.) are brought into the home, an increase in personalproperty insurance coverage may be appropriate and/or warranted.

The method 1200 may include locally or remotely directing and/orcontrolling (via the local and/or remote processor or server) thepresentation of the proposed insurance coverage and/or premiums to apotential or existing insured for approval and/or modification via amobile device and/or wireless communication 1210. As described elsewhereherein, wireless communication may be utilized to offer the insured anappropriate level of insurance and/or an adjustment to current insurancecoverage for personal belongings.

The method 1200 may include remotely receiving and/or accepting (at thelocal and/or remote processor or server) an insured's approval of,and/or modification to, the proposed insurance coverage and/or premium1212. For instance, an insurance provider may remotely receive anapproval of, and/or modification to, proposed insurance coverage from aninsured via wireless communication, as discussed elsewhere herein.

The method 1200 may include automatically tracking the location ofstolen or lost smart items via wireless communication 1214, such as viathe smart home controller, another processor, and/or a remote serverassociated with the insurance provider. A smart item may include atransmitter that may wirelessly transmit the GPS or other currentlocation of the smart item to a remote receiver, such as a smart homecontroller, and/or a receiver associated with the insurance provider ora local police department, facilitating retrieval of a lost or stolenitem.

The method 1200 may include (via a smart home controller, remote serverassociated with insurance provider, third party processor or server,and/or other remote server or processor) notifying the insured,insurance provider, police, and/or other entities of the stolen or lostsmart item's current location automatically via wireless communication1216. After which, the stolen or lost smart item may be retrieved by theinsured, insurance provider, and/or appropriate authorities.

In one aspect, a computer-implemented method of generating and/oradjusting an insurance policy, premium, and/or claim may be provided.The method may include: (1) populating a home with a smart homecontroller and/or smart items (such as smart appliances, equipment,and/or personal belongings); (2) automatically building or updating aninventory list of personal items in the home via wireless communicationbetween the smart items and the smart home controller (and/or a remoteprocessor or server associated with an insurance provider or other thirdparty); (3) automatically estimating and/or updating a total amount ofworth of the personal property in the home (via a local or remoteprocessor or server, such as the smart home controller, and/or a remoteprocessor or server associated with an insurance provider); (4)automatically estimating new and/or updating existing home or personalproperty insurance coverage, rates, and/or premiums (via the local orremote processor or server) based upon the estimated and/or updatedtotal amount of worth of the personal property in the home; (5)directing and/or controlling a presentation of proposed home or personalproperty insurance coverage, rates, and/or premiums (via the local orremote processor or server) estimated and/or updated on a display forthe insured (i.e., home or residence owner or occupant) to review,modify, and/or approve; and/or (6) remotely receiving and/or acceptingthe insured's approval of, and/or modifications to, the proposedinsurance coverage, rates, and/or premiums (via the local or remoteprocessor or server) to facilitate the insurance provider providing moreaccurate and appropriate insurance coverage to the insured.

The computer-implemented method may further include automaticallytracking (via the local or remote processor or server) the GPS (GlobalPositioning System) and/or other location of lost and/or stolen smartitems (or other personal belongings) via wireless communication sentfrom the smart items; and/or automatically notifying (via the local orremote processor or server) the insured, insurance provider, police,and/or others of the GPS and/or other location of the lost or stolensmart items via wireless communication to facilitate a retrieval of thesmart items (such as smart jewelry, televisions, computers, mobiledevices, electronic devices, appliances, furniture, etc.).

XIV. Exemplary Method of Mapping Personal Belongings forInsurance-Related Purposes

FIG. 12B depicts an exemplary computer-implemented method ofautomatically building a map of personal belonging locations within ahome and/or applying the location map, and/or locations, of personalbelongings for insurance-related purposes 1250. The method 1250 mayinclude populating a home with a smart home controller and/or smartitems (such as smart appliances, smart equipment, and/or smart personalbelongings) 1202 (such as discussed with respect to FIG. 12A and/orelsewhere herein); and/or automatically building and/or updating aninventory of personal items in the home via wireless communicationbetween the smart items and the smart home controller (or other localand/or remote processor or server) 1204 (such as discussed with respectto FIG. 12A).

The method 1250 may include automatically (via a local and/or remoteprocessor or server, such as a local smart home controller and/or remoteprocessor or server associated with an insurance provider or otherentity) mapping the location of smart items within the home 1252;automatically determining an area within the home associated with aninsurance-related event 1254; automatically determining and/orestimating damage to smart items (and/or other personal belongings)within the home based upon the virtual map of smart items locations(and/or other personal belongings) 1256; automatically generating and/oradjusting a proposed insurance claim 1258; presenting the proposedinsurance claim to the insured for approval and/or modification via theinsured's mobile device and/or wireless communication 1260; and/orremotely receiving and/or accepting the insured's approval of, and/ormodification to, the proposed insurance claim via wireless communicationreceived from the insured's mobile device 1262 for automatic and/ormanual processing/handling of the insurance claim by the insuranceprovider. The method may include additional, fewer, or alternateactions, including those discussed elsewhere herein.

The method 1250 may include automatically (via the local and/or remoteprocessor or server) mapping the location of smart items (and/or otherpersonal belongings) within the home 1252. The mapping of the locationof smart items or other personal belongings within the home may includereceiving GPS and/or other coordinate or location information from thesmart items at the local and/or remote processor or server, such as viawired or wireless communication. Additionally or alternatively, thelocal and/or remote processor or server may analyze video, photographs,and/or other images collected from smart home cameras to determinelocations of smart items and/or other personal belongings (or “dumb”items) within the home.

The method 1250 may include automatically determining (via the localand/or remote processor or server) an area within the home associatedwith an insurance-related event 1254. For instance, a smart homecontroller and/or remote server associated with an insurance providermay be in wireless communication with a number of sensors, smartappliances, and/or smart pieces of equipment located about the home. Ifan alarm or alert is detected, for instance, in the kitchen, a bathroom,the basement, the washroom, etc., the local or remote processor orserver may determine that an insurance-related event has occurred inthat area or room.

The method 1250 may include automatically determining or estimatingdamage to smart items within the home (via the local and/or remoteprocessor or server) based upon the virtual map of smart items locations1256. The local and/or remote processor or server may determine and/orestimate an extent of damage in the area or room that theinsurance-related event has occurred, such as by analyzing the type ofevent (water, fire, etc.), length of event, location or size of event,and/or other factors. Based upon the extent of the damage and thelocation of smart items and/or other personal belongings within thehome, a damage estimate may be performed. For instance, if there is asubstantial amount of water in the basement, the personal items in thebasement may be deemed or estimated to be a total loss.

The method 1250 may include automatically generating and/or adjusting aproposed insurance claim (via the local and/or remote processor orserver) 1258. Based upon the amount and/or type of damage estimated forthe home and/or personal items, the local and/or remote processor orserver may generate and/or adjust an insurance claim, policy, premium,discount, reward, etc. accordingly.

The method 1250 may include presenting, and/or directing and/orcontrolling the presentation of (via the local and/or remote processoror server), the proposed insurance claim to the insured for approvaland/or modification via the insured's mobile device and/or wirelesscommunication 1260, such as described elsewhere herein. Also asdescribed elsewhere herein with respect to different embodiments, themethod 1250 may include remotely accepting the insured's approval of,and/or modification to, the proposed insurance claim (such as by thelocal and/or remote processor or server) via wireless communicationreceived from the insured's mobile device 1262.

In one aspect, a computer-implemented method of generating and/oradjusting an insurance policy, premium, and/or claim may be provided.The method may include: (1) populating a home with a smart homecontroller and/or smart items (such as smart appliances, equipment,and/or personal belongings); (2) automatically building or updating aninventory list of personal items in the home via wireless communicationbetween the smart items and the smart home controller (and/or a remoteprocessor or server associated with an insurance provider or other thirdparty); (3) automatically mapping a location for each smart item (and/orother personal belongings) within the home (via a local or remoteprocessor or server, such as the smart home controller or an insuranceprovider computing system), such as by using GPS (Global PositioningSystem) coordinates or triangulation techniques among varioustransmitters situated about the home (such as transmitters associatedwith a smart home controller, dispersed sensors, and/or smart items,appliances, or equipment) and/or analyzing visual images, video, and/orphotographs received from a smart camera or video recorder; (4)automatically determining an area within the home associated with aninsurance-related event (via the local or remote processor or server)(such as leaking water or a flooding incident located in the masterbathroom leading to water damage in both the master bathroom and masterbedroom); (5) automatically determining and/or estimating damage tosmart items (or other personal belongings) within the home based upontheir (i) relative location information (master bedroom, etc.), (ii)coordinate or GPS location, and/or (iii) virtual map location, such asby comparing the virtual map or smart item (and/or other personalbelonging) locations within an area of the home associated with theinsurance-related event (master bedroom, living room, kitchen, basement,etc.); (6) automatically generating and/or adjusting a proposedinsurance claim (via the local or remote processor or server) based uponthe estimated damage to smart items (and/or other personal belongings);(7) directing and/or controlling a presentation of the proposedinsurance claim (via the local or remote processor or server) on adisplay for review, approval, and/or modification by the owner/occupantof the home/residence; and/or (8) remotely receiving and/or acceptingthe insured's approval of, and/or modifications to, the proposedinsurance claim (via the local and/or remote processor server) tofacilitate handling of the insurance claim, that is approved by theinsured, by the insurance provider.

XV. Exemplary Method of Processing Insurance Claims

In an aspect, a computer-implemented method of processing insuranceclaims for an insurance policy associated with a property may beprovided. The property may be populated with a controller incommunication with a plurality of devices in the property, where each ofthe plurality of devices may be configured to monitor various conditionsassociated with the property. The method may include (1) receiving, viaa first communication network, a set of sensor data from at least one ofthe plurality of devices; (2) determining, by one or more processorsfrom the set of sensor data, that the at least one of the plurality ofdevices is damaged; (3) retrieving a replacement cost of the at leastone of the plurality of devices; (4) automatically generating, by theone or more processors, a proposed insurance claim for the insurancepolicy, the proposed insurance claim including the replacement cost ofthe at least one of the plurality of devices; and/or (5) communicating,to a customer having the insurance policy, the proposed insurance claim.The method may include additional, less, or alternate actions, includingthose discussed elsewhere herein.

For instance, the method may further include receiving, from thecustomer, an acceptance of the proposed insurance claim, and/orfacilitating a processing of the proposed insurance claim with aninsurance provider.

Retrieving the replacement cost of the at least one of the plurality ofdevices may include retrieving, via the first communication network, thereplacement cost from the at least one of the plurality of devices.Additionally or alternatively, retrieving the replacement cost of the atleast one of the plurality of devices may include retrieving, via ashort range communication, the replacement cost from a data tagassociated with the at least one of the plurality of devices.

The method may further include communicating the proposed insuranceclaim to an insurance provider, wherein the insurance provider mayreconcile the replacement cost with additional replacement costsassociated with additional devices similar to the at least one of theplurality of devices. The method may further include receiving, from theinsurance provider, a set of modifications to the proposed insuranceclaim.

The method may further include accessing additional replacement costdata associated with additional devices similar to the at least one ofthe plurality of devices, comparing the replacement cost to theadditional replacement cost data, and/or modifying the replacement costbased upon the comparing. The method may further include receiving, froma third-party source, an updated replacement cost of the at least one ofthe plurality of devices, and/or modifying the replacement costaccording to the updated replacement cost.

Communicating the proposed insurance claim may include communicating theproposed insurance claim to the customer via a second communicationnetwork. In one embodiment, receiving the set of sensor data may beresponsive to detecting an insurance-related event.

XVI. Exemplary System of Processing an Insurance Policy

In another aspect, a system of processing an insurance policy associatedwith a property may be provided. The property may be populated with aplurality of devices configured to monitor various conditions associatedwith the property. The system may include a memory adapted to storenon-transitory computer executable instructions, a communication moduleadapted to communicate data, and a processor adapted to interface withthe communication module. The processor may be configured to execute thenon-transitory computer executable instructions to cause the processorto (1) receive, via the communication module, a set of sensor data fromat least one of the plurality of devices; (2) determine, from the set ofsensor data, that the at least one of the plurality of devices isdamaged; (3) retrieve a replacement cost of the at least one of theplurality of devices; (4) automatically generate a proposed insuranceclaim for the insurance policy, the proposed insurance claim includingthe replacement cost of the at least one of the plurality of devices;and/or (5) communicate, via the communication module to a customerhaving the insurance policy, the proposed insurance claim. The processormay be configured with additional, less, or alternate functionality,including that discussed elsewhere herein.

For instance, the processor may be further configured to receive, fromthe customer via the communication module, an acceptance of the proposedinsurance claim, and/or facilitate a processing of the proposedinsurance claim with an insurance provider.

To retrieve the replacement cost of the at least one of the plurality ofdevices, the processor may be configured to retrieve, via a firstcommunication network, the replacement cost from the at least one of theplurality of devices. Additionally or alternatively, to retrieve thereplacement cost of the at least one of the plurality of devices, theprocessor may be configured to retrieve, via a short rangecommunication, the replacement cost from a data tag associated with theat least one of the plurality of devices.

The processor may be configured to communicate the proposed insuranceclaim to an insurance provider, wherein the insurance providerreconciles the replacement cost with additional replacement costsassociated with additional devices similar to the at least one of theplurality of devices. The processor may also be configured to receive,from the insurance provider, a set of modifications to the proposedinsurance claim.

The processor may be configured to access additional replacement costdata associated with additional devices similar to the at least one ofthe plurality of devices, compare the replacement cost to the additionalreplacement cost data, and/or modify the replacement cost based upon thecomparing.

The processor may be further configured to receive, from a third-partysource, an updated replacement cost of the at least one of the pluralityof devices, and/or modify the replacement cost according to the updatedreplacement cost. To communicate the proposed insurance claim, theprocessor may be configured to communicate the proposed insurance claimto the customer via a second communication network.

XVII. Exemplary Method of Processing Insurance Claims

In a further aspect, a method of processing insurance claims for aninsurance policy associated with a property may be provided. Theproperty may be populated with a controller in communication with aplurality of devices in the property, where each of the plurality ofdevices may be configured to monitor various conditions associated withthe property. The method may include (1) receiving, via wired orwireless communication and/or a first communication network, a set ofsensor data from at least one of the plurality of devices; (2)determining, by one or more processors from the set of sensor data, thatthe at least one of the plurality of devices is damaged; (3) retrievinga replacement cost of the at least one of the plurality of devices; (4)automatically generating, by the one or more processors, a proposedinsurance claim for the insurance policy, the proposed insurance claimincluding the replacement cost of the at least one of the plurality ofdevices; and/or (5) causing the proposed insurance claim, by the one ormore processors, to be presented on a display for customer review orapproval. The method may include additional, less, or alternatefunctionality, including that discussed elsewhere herein.

XVIII. Additional Considerations

As used herein, the term “smart” may refer to devices, sensors, orappliances located within or proximate to a property, and with theability to communicate information about the status of the device,sensor, or appliance and/or receive instructions that control theoperation of the device, sensor, or appliance, such as via wired orwireless communication or data transmissions. For example, a smartthermostat may be able to remotely communicate the current temperatureof the home and receive instructions to adjust the temperature to a newlevel. As another example, a smart water tank may be able to remotelycommunicate the water level contained therein and receive instructionsto restrict the flow of water leaving the tank. In contrast, “dumb”devices, sensors, or appliances located within or proximate to aproperty may require manual control. Referring again to the thermostatexample, to adjust the temperature on a “dumb” thermostat, a person mayhave to manually interact with the thermostat. As such, a person may beunable to use a communication network to remotely adjust a “dumb”device, sensor, or appliance.

A “smart device” as used herein may refer to any of a smart device,sensor, appliance, and/or other smart equipment that may be located (ordisposed) within or proximate to a property. In some embodiments inwhich an appliance and a sensor external to the particular appliance areassociated with each other, “smart device” may refer to both theexternal sensors and the appliance collectively. Some examples ofdevices that may be “smart devices” are, without limitation, valves,piping, clothes washers/dryers, dish washers, refrigerators, sprinklersystems, toilets, showers, sinks, soil monitors, doors, locks, windows,shutters, ovens, grills, fire places, furnaces, lighting, sump pumps,security cameras, and alarm systems. Similarly, an individual associatedwith the property shall be referred to as the “homeowner,” “propertyowner,” or “policyholder,” but it is also envisioned that the individualmay be a family member of the homeowner, a person renting/subletting theproperty, a person living or working on the property, a neighbor of theproperty, or any other individual that may have an interest inpreventing or mitigating damage to the property.

Further, any reference to “home” or “property” is meant to be exemplaryand not limiting. The systems and methods described herein may beapplied to any property, such as homes, offices, farms, lots, parks,apartments, condos, and/or other types of properties or buildings.Accordingly, “homeowner” may be used interchangeably with “propertyowner.”

Although the following text sets forth a detailed description ofnumerous different embodiments, it should be understood that the legalscope of the invention may be defined by the words of the claims setforth at the end of this patent. The detailed description is to beconstrued as exemplary only and does not describe every possibleembodiment, as describing every possible embodiment would beimpractical, if not impossible. One could implement numerous alternateembodiments, using either current technology or technology developedafter the filing date of this patent, which would still fall within thescope of the claims.

Throughout this specification, plural instances may implementcomponents, operations, or structures described as a single instance.Although individual operations of one or more methods are illustratedand described as separate operations, one or more of the individualoperations may be performed concurrently, and nothing requires that theoperations be performed in the order illustrated. Structures andfunctionality presented as separate components in example configurationsmay be implemented as a combined structure or component. Similarly,structures and functionality presented as a single component may beimplemented as separate components. These and other variations,modifications, additions, and improvements fall within the scope of thesubject matter herein.

Additionally, certain embodiments are described herein as includinglogic or a number of routines, subroutines, applications, orinstructions. These may constitute either software (e.g., code embodiedon a non-transitory, machine-readable medium) or hardware. In hardware,the routines, etc., are tangible units capable of performing certainoperations and may be configured or arranged in a certain manner. Inexample embodiments, one or more computer systems (e.g., a standalone,client or server computer system) or one or more hardware modules of acomputer system (e.g., a processor or a group of processors) may beconfigured by software (e.g., an application or application portion) asa hardware module that operates to perform certain operations asdescribed herein.

In various embodiments, a hardware module may be implementedmechanically or electronically. For example, a hardware module maycomprise dedicated circuitry or logic that may be permanently configured(e.g., as a special-purpose processor, such as a field programmable gatearray (FPGA) or an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC)) toperform certain operations. A hardware module may also compriseprogrammable logic or circuitry (e.g., as encompassed within ageneral-purpose processor or other programmable processor) that may betemporarily configured by software to perform certain operations. Itwill be appreciated that the decision to implement a hardware modulemechanically, in dedicated and permanently configured circuitry, or intemporarily configured circuitry (e.g., configured by software) may bedriven by cost and time considerations.

Accordingly, the term “hardware module” should be understood toencompass a tangible entity, be that an entity that is physicallyconstructed, permanently configured (e.g., hardwired), or temporarilyconfigured (e.g., programmed) to operate in a certain manner or toperform certain operations described herein. Considering embodiments inwhich hardware modules are temporarily configured (e.g., programmed),each of the hardware modules need not be configured or instantiated atany one instance in time. For example, where the hardware modulescomprise a general-purpose processor configured using software, thegeneral-purpose processor may be configured as respective differenthardware modules at different times. Software may accordingly configurea processor, for example, to constitute a particular hardware module atone instance of time and to constitute a different hardware module at adifferent instance of time.

Hardware modules may provide information to, and receive informationfrom, other hardware modules. Accordingly, the described hardwaremodules may be regarded as being communicatively coupled. Where multipleof such hardware modules exist contemporaneously, communications may beachieved through signal transmission (e.g., over appropriate circuitsand buses) that connect the hardware modules. In embodiments in whichmultiple hardware modules are configured or instantiated at differenttimes, communications between such hardware modules may be achieved, forexample, through the storage and retrieval of information in memorystructures to which the multiple hardware modules have access. Forexample, one hardware module may perform an operation and store theoutput of that operation in a memory device to which it may becommunicatively coupled. A further hardware module may then, at a latertime, access the memory device to retrieve and process the storedoutput. Hardware modules may also initiate communications with input oroutput devices, and may operate on a resource (e.g., a collection ofinformation).

The various operations of example methods described herein may beperformed, at least partially, by one or more processors that aretemporarily configured (e.g., by software) or permanently configured toperform the relevant operations. Whether temporarily or permanentlyconfigured, such processors may constitute processor-implemented modulesthat operate to perform one or more operations or functions. The modulesreferred to herein may, in some example embodiments, compriseprocessor-implemented modules.

Similarly, the methods or routines described herein may be at leastpartially processor-implemented. For example, at least some of theoperations of a method may be performed by one or more processors orprocessor-implemented hardware modules. The performance of certain ofthe operations may be distributed among the one or more processors, notonly residing within a single machine, but deployed across a number ofmachines. In some example embodiments, the processor or processors maybe located in a single location (e.g., within a home environment, anoffice environment, or as a server farm), while in other embodiments theprocessors may be distributed across a number of locations.

The performance of certain of the operations may be distributed amongthe one or more processors, not only residing within a single machine,but deployed across a number of machines. In some example embodiments,the one or more processors or processor-implemented modules may belocated in a single geographic location (e.g., within a homeenvironment, an office environment, or a server farm). In other exampleembodiments, the one or more processors or processor-implemented modulesmay be distributed across a number of geographic locations.

Unless specifically stated otherwise, discussions herein using wordssuch as “processing,” “computing,” “calculating,” “determining,”“presenting,” “displaying,” or the like may refer to actions orprocesses of a machine (e.g., a computer) that manipulates or transformsdata represented as physical (e.g., electronic, magnetic, or optical)quantities within one or more memories (e.g., volatile memory,non-volatile memory, or a combination thereof), registers, or othermachine components that receive, store, transmit, or displayinformation.

As used herein any reference to “one embodiment” or “an embodiment”means that a particular element, feature, structure, or characteristicdescribed in connection with the embodiment may be included in at leastone embodiment. The appearances of the phrase “in one embodiment” invarious places in the specification are not necessarily all referring tothe same embodiment.

The terms “insurer,” “insuring party,” and “insurance provider” are usedinterchangeably herein to generally refer to a party or entity (e.g., abusiness or other organizational entity) that provides insuranceproducts, e.g., by offering and issuing insurance policies. Typically,but not necessarily, an insurance provider may be an insurance company.

Although the embodiments discussed herein relate to home or personalproperty insurance policies, it should be appreciated that an insuranceprovider may offer or provide one or more different types of insurancepolicies. Other types of insurance policies may include, for example,condominium owner insurance, renter's insurance, life insurance (e.g.,whole-life, universal, variable, term), health insurance, disabilityinsurance, long-term care insurance, annuities, business insurance(e.g., property, liability, commercial auto, workers compensation,professional and specialty liability, inland marine and mobile property,surety and fidelity bonds), automobile insurance, boat insurance,insurance for catastrophic events such as flood, fire, volcano damageand the like, motorcycle insurance, farm and ranch insurance, personalliability insurance, personal umbrella insurance, community organizationinsurance (e.g., for associations, religious organizations,cooperatives), and other types of insurance products. In embodiments asdescribed herein, the insurance providers process claims related toinsurance policies that cover one or more properties (e.g., homes,automobiles, personal property), although processing other insurancepolicies may also be envisioned.

The terms “insured,” “insured party,” “policyholder,” “customer,”“claimant,” and “potential claimant” are used interchangeably herein torefer to a person, party, or entity (e.g., a business or otherorganizational entity) that is covered by the insurance policy, e.g.,whose insured article or entity (e.g., property, life, health, auto,home, business) is covered by the policy. A “guarantor,” as used herein,generally refers to a person, party or entity that is responsible forpayment of the insurance premiums. The guarantor may or may not be thesame party as the insured, such as in situations when a guarantor haspower of attorney for the insured. An “annuitant,” as referred toherein, generally refers to a person, party or entity that is entitledto receive benefits from an annuity insurance product offered by theinsuring party. The annuitant may or may not be the same party as theguarantor.

As used herein, the terms “comprises,” “comprising,” “may include,”“including,” “has,” “having” or any other variation thereof, areintended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion. For example, a process,method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements is notnecessarily limited to only those elements but may include otherelements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method,article, or apparatus. Further, unless expressly stated to the contrary,“or” refers to an inclusive or and not to an exclusive or. For example,a condition A or B is satisfied by any one of the following: A is true(or present) and B is false (or not present), A is false (or notpresent) and B is true (or present), and both A and B are true (orpresent).

In addition, use of the “a” or “an” are employed to describe elementsand components of the embodiments herein. This is done merely forconvenience and to give a general sense of the description. Thisdescription, and the claims that follow, should be read to include oneor at least one and the singular also may include the plural unless itis obvious that it is meant otherwise.

This detailed description is to be construed as examples and does notdescribe every possible embodiment, as describing every possibleembodiment would be impractical, if not impossible. One could implementnumerous alternate embodiments, using either current technology ortechnology developed after the filing date of this application.

What is claimed:
 1. A computer-implemented method of processinginsurance claims for an insurance policy associated with a property, theproperty populated with a controller in communication with a pluralityof devices in the property, each of the plurality of devices configuredto monitor various conditions associated with the property, the methodcomprising: receiving, via a first communication network, a set ofsensor data from at least one of the plurality of devices; determining,by one or more processors from the set of sensor data, that the at leastone of the plurality of devices is damaged; retrieving a replacementcost of the at least one of the plurality of devices, the replacementcost retrieved, via a short range communication, from a data tagassociated with the at least one of the plurality of devices;automatically generating, by the one or more processors, a proposedinsurance claim for the insurance policy, the proposed insurance claimincluding the replacement cost of the at least one of the plurality ofdevices; and communicating, to an electronic device associated with acustomer having the insurance policy, the proposed insurance claim. 2.The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:receiving, from the electronic device associated with the customer, anacceptance of the proposed insurance claim; and facilitating aprocessing of the proposed insurance claim with an insurance provider.3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:communicating the proposed insurance claim to an insurance provider,wherein the insurance provider reconciles the replacement cost withadditional replacement costs associated with additional devices similarto the at least one of the plurality of devices.
 4. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 3, further comprising: receiving,from the insurance provider, a set of modifications to the proposedinsurance claim.
 5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, furthercomprising: accessing additional replacement cost data associated withadditional devices similar to the at least one of the plurality ofdevices; comparing the replacement cost to the additional replacementcost data; and modifying the replacement cost based upon the comparing.6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:receiving, from a third-party source, an updated replacement cost of theat least one of the plurality of devices; and modifying the replacementcost according to the updated replacement cost.
 7. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein communicating theproposed insurance claim comprises: communicating the proposed insuranceclaim to the electronic device associated with the customer via a secondcommunication network.
 8. The computer-implemented method of claim 1,wherein receiving the set of sensor data is responsive to: detecting aninsurance-related event.
 9. A system for processing an insurance policyassociated with a property, the property populated with a plurality ofdevices configured to monitor various conditions associated with theproperty, comprising: a memory for storing non-transitory computerexecutable instructions; a communication module for communicating data;and a processor interfacing with the communication module, wherein theprocessor is configured to execute the non-transitory computerexecutable instructions to cause the processor to: receive, via thecommunication module, a set of sensor data from at least one of theplurality of devices, determine, from the set of sensor data, that theat least one of the plurality of devices is damaged, retrieve, via thecommunication module, a replacement cost of the at least one of theplurality of devices, the replacement cost retrieved, via a short rangecommunication, from a data tag associated with the at least one of theplurality of devices, automatically generate a proposed insurance claimfor the insurance policy, the proposed insurance claim including thereplacement cost of the at least one of the plurality of devices, andcommunicate, via the communication module to an electronic deviceassociated with a customer having the insurance policy, the proposedinsurance claim.
 10. The system of claim 9, wherein the processor isfurther configured to: receive, from the electronic device associatedwith the customer via the communication module, an acceptance of theproposed insurance claim, and facilitate a processing of the proposedinsurance claim with an insurance provider.
 11. The system of claim 9,wherein the processor is further configured to: communicate the proposedinsurance claim to an insurance provider, wherein the insurance providerreconciles the replacement cost with additional replacement costsassociated with additional devices similar to the at least one of theplurality of devices.
 12. The system of claim 11, wherein the processoris further configured to: receive, from the insurance provider, a set ofmodifications to the proposed insurance claim.
 13. The system of claim9, wherein the processor is further configured to: access additionalreplacement cost data associated with additional devices similar to theat least one of the plurality of devices, compare the replacement costto the additional replacement cost data, and modify the replacement costbased upon the comparing.
 14. The system of claim 9, wherein theprocessor is further configured to: receive, from a third-party source,an updated replacement cost of the at least one of the plurality ofdevices, and modify the replacement cost according to the updatedreplacement cost.
 15. The system of claim 9, wherein to communicate theproposed insurance claim, the processor is configured to: communicatethe proposed insurance claim to the electronic device associated withthe customer via a second communication network.
 16. Acomputer-implemented method of processing insurance claims for aninsurance policy associated with a property, the property populated witha controller in communication with a plurality of devices in theproperty, each of the plurality of devices configured to monitor variousconditions associated with the property, the method comprising:receiving, via a first communication network, a set of sensor dataassociated with least one of the plurality of devices; determining, byone or more processors from the set of sensor data, that the at leastone of the plurality of devices is damaged; retrieving a replacementcost of the at least one of the plurality of devices, the replacementcost retrieved, via a short range communication, from a data tagassociated with the at least one of the plurality of devices;automatically generating, by the one or more processors, a proposedinsurance claim for the insurance policy, the proposed insurance claimincluding the replacement cost of the at least one of the plurality ofdevices; and causing, by the one or more processors, the proposedinsurance claim to be presented on a display of an electronic device forcustomer review.